Uptown Boy
by AndAllThatGoodStuff
Summary: Logan comes from a high class family where image is everything. Kendall is the downtown boy that works for him. Kogan, slight Jagan
1. Chapter 1

I sighed, checking my watch for possibly the tenth time that night. It was a quarter until nine, or in other other words, forty-five minutes after James said he would be here. I awkwardly sat alone at our reserved table for two, looking at the other couples around me talk and smile at each other like they were having the best time in the world.

They all made me sick.

My frowned deepened when I saw another couple across the restaurant cheer and celebrate together at the acceptance of a proposal. The rest of the nearby patrons applauded for them. Except for me. They were just another couple that get to live 'happily ever after' with each other until they die.

_Congratu-frickin-lations._

I thought as I raised my wineglass to them before gulping the rest of it down. I reached for the bottle again (I had the waiter leave it at the table a _long _time ago), and sighed heavily when I found that it was empty. It was completely out of character for me to drink a whole bottle of wine. It was in fact odd for me to take more than a few sips. It wasn't how I was raised to behave, so when I felt the alcohol taking its affect on me it felt strange and wonderful. I liked it.

I sat back in my chair and continued to watch the newly engaged couple talk animatedly with each other. Probably about wedding plans and who was going to _just die _when they heard and how much they _loved_ each other. I checked my watch again and found it to be nine already which could mean that James forgot about our date or just didn't care enough to show up. Either way, it made him an asshole.

I quickly got the check and used James' credit card to pay for not only the bottle of wine I drank but the meal of the happily engaged couple a few tables ahead of me. I also sent them the most expensive bottle of wine on the menu.

Because I was just that kind.

Maybe I was a little bitter. This wasn't the first time James had stood me up. He was probably out at a party, drinking, and flirting with some snobby rich girl. He'll probably show up at home at three in the morning, piss drunk and horny. He'll try to seduce me up until he passes out and then I'll have to drag him to the couch and lay him on his side to prevent him from choking on his own vomit. Because as bad a boyfriend as James is, he didn't deserve to die from his own regurgitated stomach contents. He was still my friend.

Though I don't know exactly why I'm so bitter. It's not because I love James. I'm not even sure if I _love_ James. I care about him, sure—I wouldn't waste my time watching over him in a drunken state if I didn't—but I don't love him. I assume James feels the same from the way he acts so aloof. We have been friends for years and I know him better than he does—spoiled, slightly arrogant and self absorbed, too dependent on money for his own good. Needless to say, James isn't really my type.

We wouldn't be together if it weren't for our parents setting us up in hopes that we would get married someday. When we both came out to our parents as liking guys—as well as girls, in James' case—they immediately thought we should be together. It wasn't because they thought James would be good for me, no, my parents found him as temperamentally fickle as I did. "It would so good to have a Diamond on your arm, sweetie. Even if he _is _a man," my mother had told me. "To have the Mitchell and Diamond name combined would do wonders for our reputation."

Unable to disappoint my mother, I went with it. I had always been taught that image is everything and my mom was correct; having a Diamond on my arm made me, and my whole family, look great. The same went for James with me. After that we kind of just...put up with each other. Despite the others faults, no matter how irritating, we stayed together. We never spoke ill of one another or complained outside of our own home. During family visits James was 'darling' and 'the sweetest' and we were 'in love', but it was all a lie made up to keep the perfect, wholesome, upscale image our parents had created for us.

And I was sick of it.

"Sir?" A soft soft voice interrupted my thoughts. I looked up the the blond waiter who had once again made his way to my table. Concern for me shone in his green eyes just like every time he had approached. "Do you need anything else?"

I gave a smile, maybe a bit to large, in return. The wine must have been getting to me. "I actually do need something." I used my foot to kick out the other chair beside me and patted it. The waiter raised a ridiculously thick eyebrow at me and I giggle. "Don't be shy. I don't bite."

The blond chuckled, flashing me a pair of gorgeous dimples that could rival my own. "Sir, I'm working." He said softly.

I pouted a bit. "But as my waiter you're supposed to serve me, right?"

"Yes, sir."

"Give me whatever I ask for and to make me happy?"

The server sighed, but he still kept a smile. "Yes, sir."

"Well, then..." I smiled, patting the seat invitingly again. I don't know why I wanted him to join me so badly. Spite, maybe? Perhaps I wanted another excuse so that I could put more charges on James' card. Maybe I was hoping that James would walk in that door after all and see that I could get anyone I wanted as well, that I would be just fine without him. Then he would clean up his act and be the boyfriend he was supposed to be, and then I might actually fall for him.

Then again, maybe I was just lonely and tired. I was tired of living this lie and I wanted something different.

When he continued to hesitate I poked out my bottom lip and gave him the best puppy dog face I could manage under the influence of alcohol. "Please?" I asked again, running my hand over the seat of the chair whilst batting my eyes a bit, hoping that would entice him.

I smiled when he chuckled and took the seat. "I've never been able to say no to a puppy dog pout." He shook his head. "My boss isn't going to like this."

I giggled again though what he said wasn't funny at all. I blame the alcohol. "Well, if he comes by I'll just explain to him that you're on a date and cannot be disturbed." The blond gave me a surprised look but I ignored it. "So, waiter...person-"

"You can call me Kendall."

I smiled to myself. He had a nice name. "Okay, Kendall, what do you think I should order tonight?" I leaned my elbows on the table and rested my chin in my hands. I probably looked like a ten year old waiting on the most interesting explanation in the world.

Kendall laughed at me again. I supposed I would be laughing too if I could see myself. "I don't know...I don't really eat here." He answered sheepishly.

"So where do you eat?" I inquired.

I noticed his eyes light up. "There's this bar that serves the _best _burgers in town." Kendall made a longing, kind of, groaning noise as his head fell back. He was muttering things I couldn't understand—it sounded like pure gibberish—but I could tell it was something good from the large smile on his face and his tongue poking from the side of his mouth. I laughed at it. "I eat there every day for breakfast, lunch, and dinner."

I couldn't stop giggling at this man.

"You like to laugh, don't you?" He was giving me that dimply smile again.

"I don't know." I flashed him my own dimples. "I think I'm drunk."

His brow lifted. "You _think_?"

"I've never been drunk before." I admitted.

"Well from being your server tonight I know you've had a whole bottle of wine," He reached over and tipped the bottle of wine over to show that no wine was left in the bottle. "and since this your first time consuming this much, I think you are drunk." He smirked. He glanced at my stomach when it let out a loud growl. "And hungry." He added with a smile.

"I am." With a sigh I glanced at the menu beside me, suddenly not finding any of this appealing. "Let's go to your place."

Both of his eyebrows shot up and the look of shock was on his face again. "My place?"

"Not your _place_." I rolled my eyes. "Your place. The burger...bar place. Take me there."

"I-I'm still working." He looked around nervously as if someone was watching us right now.

I rolled my eyes again. "Don't worry about it." I grabbed his hand and pulled on it as I stood. "Please?" I gave him the puppy dog pout again.

"Okay," He gave in a lot quicker this time. "Since you're my date for this evening, I guess I should make sure you have a good time." He smirked. I could feel heat rushing to my cheeks as he did. "I have to go change first. I can't go to Fifth Avenue looking like a penguin."

He walked passed me just as my smile fell. "Wait." I turned to face him. "We're going to Fifth Avenue?" My voice went high with nerves.

"Yeah." He turned to look at me, wearing a teasing smile. "Is that going to be a problem?"

I gulped. Fifth Avenue was on the other side of town that was known as the south side of town. It was the polar opposite of the north side—the side I grew up on. The south side was the party side of town. It was full of clubs that were full of sex and drugs. The people that lived there were dirty goons that drank everyday, committed crimes, and put shame on the city.

...At least that's what my mother says.

I didn't believe her...completely. Honestly the thought had always slightly intrigued me. What was the south side like? Were the people as bad as my mom and her circle of friends made them out to be? Could it just be snotty rich people turning their nose up at the less fortunate like they were 'better' than them or something? It wouldn't surprise me. Now I have this perfect opportunity to find out for myself. Plus, Kendall seemed pretty trustworthy. He would protect me.

"No," I said bravely. "No problem at all."

Kendall smirked again and left me alone at the table. He came back a few minutes later dressed in a black and white plaid shirt, a pair of jeans, and some worn out Vans. I couldn't help but think he looked so much better in his street clothes than in that, as he put it, 'penguin' suit. I just hoped my vest and button down looked okay. "Ready?" Kendall asked.

I nodded, following him out of the restaurant and down the sidewalk, towards the parking lot. "How are we getting there? I'm not exactly in any condition to drive." I reminded.

"Don't worry." Kendall wrapped his arm around my shoulder. "We're taking the bus."

I paused for a moment but Kendall continued to pull me along. "The bus?" I squeaked.

"Yeah, you know, the big loud thing that takes people where they want to go."

"I know what the bus is!" I slightly glared at him. "I just didn't know they ran over here."

"Sure do." Kendall pulled me along quickly to catch the bus that was at the bus stop right then. He paid for both of us before continuing to drag me to a seat in the middle. It was silent and I was partially glad the bus was almost empty. It gave me some time to let this whole situation soak in. I was letting a stranger take me out for burgers in South Side. The wine must have given me some sort of confidence boost because any other day I wouldn't have ever done this.

"I've never ridden the bus before." I finally breathes out after moments of silence.

"Seriously?" Kendall laughed.

I shook my head again. "I've had a car since I was sixteen. Any other time I was driven around."

The blond made an 'oh' sound as he nodded. We continued to ride in silence. "Wow." I breathed, looking with utter fascination out the window. The soft lights and calm atmosphere was slowly being replaced with different hues of flashing florescent lights and busy streets. The people were running around, selling things, socializing, and having a good time.

It wasn't at all like my mother had told me. It wasn't dirty. It was breath-taking. The people didn't look like criminals or thugs. They looked like normal people living normal lives and just having fun, more fun than I've ever had at home. "How are you liking it so far?"

I turned to face Kendall who was smirking at my reaction. "It's looks amazing." I grinned, directing my gaze back to the sight outside my window.

"It looks even better when you're off the bus." I glanced around to see the vehicle had come to a stop and Kendall was stretching his hand out to me. With slight hesitation I took it and allowed him to continue to lead me around.

Kendall was right. It was even better up close than behind a glass. The lights, the people...even the smell. "What is that?" I asked, sniffing the air.

Kendall sniffed too, smiling to himself. "It's the bakery." He pointed out the source of the delicious smelling pastries up ahead. He pulled me up to the window to let me look inside at the line up of breads, cakes, and cookies. "My friend Carlos' mother owns it. She makes the _best _chocolate chip cookies...in the world."

_That _I wasn't so sure about. I had quite a sweet tooth, so I had tasted some pretty good chocolate chips cookies in my day. "I'll be the judge of that." I responded with a smirk.

Kendall raised a brow at me. I noticed that he did that a lot, but it works for him. "You doubt my judgment?" He chuckled.

"Our personal chefs made some awesome cookies when I was growing up." Gustavo and Kelly were amazing in the kitchen. I would go in there for snacks all the time. Sometimes Gustavo would yell at me, but Kelly always sneaked me and James a cookie off his baking tray before sending us away.

"Well, after your burger, you have to have one. These will blow every other cookie you've ever had out of the water." Kendall continued to pull me along. It was then I realized that he was still holding my hand, but I wasn't about to make him let go.

I took two large steps to catch up with his pace. "How far is this place?"

"Not much further." He pointed at a small diner and bar looking building with a blinking 'open' sign just across the street from us.

We quickly crossed the road, Kendall holding my hand the entire way, and made out way through the door of the building. It wasn't empty but it wasn't crowded and busy either. It was the perfect amount of people. I was comfortable here. "Jen!" Kendall yelled as he entered. A read-headed woman in a waitress uniform popped up from behind the counter. "Two specials."

"Coming up." She responded.

Kendall lead me to a booth offering me one side with a bow, which I giggled at, before taking his own seat across from me. "Having fun yet?" He questioned with a small smile.

"Way more than back at the restaurant." I smiled back. "So, you take the bus here everyday? For every meal?"

Kendall chuckled. "I don't need to take the bus here."

"You walk?"

"Yep."

"Isn't that sort of a long walk from North Side to here?"

Kendall laughed again and I tilted my head in confusion. "I don't live on the north side." He finally said. I was even more confused now. "I live right down the street from here." He gestured vaguely with his hand to somewhere outside.

My eyes went wide. "You live here?" I leaned in and whispered.

Kendall leaned in as well. "It's not a secret." He whispered back. I rolled my eyes, letting my behind fall back to its seat. "I take the bus to work in that fancy place you rich kids call a restaurant."

"But why?"

Kendall shrugged. "It pays better." He answered simply.

I would have continued to question him if the woman, who's name I learned was Jen, came over with two burgers. "Two specials." She announce setting the food in front of us and sliding into the booth beside Kendall. I wasn't sure why, but seeing them sitting so close really irked me. Kendall was supposed to be _my _date. Of course, we were only calling it that as a joke and I had a boyfriend but—besides, this woman had to be at least thirty! Was she some kind of cougar who went after men in their twenties? I had heard of women like that. In fact, my mom was friends with quite a few. I guess the south side wasn't that different from the north after all.

"Thanks, mom." Kendall kissed Jen's cheek before digging into the sandwich.

My eyes darted between them momentarily. "Mom?"

Kendall swallowed. "Yeah, this is my mom. She owns the diner." He explained. I felt a rush a relief from the news and even a tiny bit of guilt from judging the waitress so harshly before really getting to know her. "Mom, this is..." Kendall trailed off, looking to me.

Through all this commotion, and my slightly drunken state, I hadn't even noticed that I had forgotten to give Kendall my name. I smiled up at his mother, offering my hand in the respectful way I had always been taught. "My name is Logan." I noticed Kendall smiling wider at me from the corner of my eye.

Jen grinned, shaking my hand in return. "Hi, sweetheart." She looked to Kendall again. "He's cute." She whispered, making us both blush.

"Mom!" Kendall whined.

"I'm sorry. You go off to work this morning and come back early with a date. It's adorable." She giggled.

"Yeah, well," Kendall went on, obviously trying to ignore his mother's commentary. "I was kind of recruited to be his date for the night." He smirked at me and I ducked my head to hide the growing blush on my face. "Speaking of which, you haven't even tried your burger yet." I looked down at the sandwich in front of me, taking it in my hands, and carefully inspecting it. "Don't tell me you've never had a burger before, either?" Kendall chuckled from across the table.

"I have!" I shot a glare at him, but then laughed. "Just...never like this."

"This isn't your fancy zero calorie eggplant veggie burger. This is the real deal." Kendall told me excitedly.

I gulped, mentally preparing myself for this. I opened my mouth, allowing the food to move past my lips and my teeth to sink into it. Kendall and Jen watched me closely as I chewed the first bite slowly. It was juicier and definitely messier than I was used to, but it all that didn't matter because it tasted fantastic! I swallowed, giving the two a smile. "It's good."

"Just good?" Kendall asked, quirking his brow and smiling cockily once again.

"Okay, it's amazing and I'll never doubt your burger tastes again." I laughed at Kendall's triumphant smile, taking another bite.

"You two are too cute." Jen gushed.

"Mom!" Kendall whined again, only making her laugh and pinch his cheek as she stood to leave.

"Enjoy the rest of your date, you two."

"Bye, mom." Kendall said quickly, using his hand to hide the blush on his face which I couldn't help but giggle at. He looked so cute. He finally looked up again when Jen was out of earshot and shot me a sheepish smile. "Sorry about that. She can be a little embarrassing."

"I think she's nice." I shrugged.

"Yeah, but she kept teasing us about the whole date thing." He rubbed the back of his neck nervously. "I-I know we joked about it a lot, but I know this isn't a real date."

I shrugged again. "It kind of is." I said simply.

Kendall gave me another surprised face. I didn't blame him. I was surprised with myself. Alcohol must give me a sort of bold confidence I've never had before. It was the perfect contrast to my sober self—boring, nerdy, plain ol' Hortense. I only wish I could be like this all the time, but, despite how much I love my drunken personality, I couldn't be drunk all the time. There was no way my mother would approve of that, or this kind of behavior, even while sober.

"Kendall!" A new voice joined us and I looked up to see a short, Latino boy running towards us. "Guess what!" He was bouncing excitedly when he reached us.

"What?"

"I was walking over here and I passed by Jim's cart..."

"Jim?" Kendall chuckled.

"The corndog guy!" The boy continued as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. "Anyway, I'm walking by and Jim is choking. So I gave him that heemlick thing."

I tilted my head at the strange word before it clicked. "You mean the Heimlich?" I spoke up.

"Yeah, that!" He pointed at me then continued his story. "Anyway, I gave him the heemlick..." Kendall and I rolled our eyes. "and now I get corndogs for free!"

"That's great, buddy." Kendall patted his shoulder with a smile.

"I know!" The short boy bounced again before looking to me suddenly. "Who's the guy?"

Kendall chuckled, turning to look at me again. "This is Logan. I met him at work. Logan, this is my friend Carlos."

I nodded, extending my hand. "Nice to meet you."

"You too." Carlos grabbed my hands with both of his and shook almost viciously. I had to hold onto my seat to keep from falling. He when he let go, he immediately scooted into my side of the booth and started talking so quickly, I almost couldn't keep up. "You seem really cool. Of course, you have to be if Kendall likes you. Kendall has good taste. He says he can read people. I'm not sure what that means though, but he knows nice people. Are you nice? I think you are. You're friends with Kendall. You have to be. Kendall only likes nice people. He doesn't like his job though. He says the people he works with are asses. Do you work with Kendall? You're not an ass, right?"

And that was just the few sentences I caught. He probably said a lot more. I chuckled, now slightly nervous from this new person. I looked to Kendall who only shrugged and smiled at us. "Um, I don't think I'm an...ass, as you so kindly put it." I said softly. I guess even under the influence of alcohol I was still the shy kid from North Side.

"Carlos, Logan doesn't work with me." Kendall pointed out.

"Yeah, I was having dinner there." I explained further. "At least I was _supposed _to." I mumbled to myself bitterly after remembering that James hadn't even bothered to show up or even call or—

"Oh!" Carlos nodded. "So, you're a Label, huh?"

"Uh...a Label?"

"Stop it, Carlos." Kendall rolled his eyes.

"Wait, what's a Label?"

Kendall sighed. "It's what some people here call the people in North Side. You know, people obsessed with labels—from material things to social labels. So they're labeled them as what they want to be. A label."

I really should have been offended, but that was a pretty accurate depiction of exactly how everyone on the other side of town acted. "Don't get upset." Kendall continued. "I don't think you're like that. You're different." I felt the corners of my mouth twitch upward into a smile at his words and I was pretty sure another blush had made its way to my cheeks.

"Besides, it's not like you guys don't have a name for us." Carlos mentioned.

"Just your general equivalence of thugs and delinquents." I said quietly. "I don't know of a special kind of name for you."

To my surprise, Carlos looked disappointed. "Aw."

Kendall laughed at his friend's reaction before changing the subject. "Hey, Carlos. Logan here doesn't think your mom's cookies are the greatest in the history of the world."

Carlos let out a loud gasp and faced me. "Are you fucking kidding me? They're the best!" He exclaimed.

"That's what I said!" Kendall looked at me with his smirk again. "He thinks his personal chef does a better job."

The Latino made a 'pffft' sound. "No fucking way does he know cookies better than my mom."

"Well, Gustavo studied culinary arts for ten years in Paris. That's the top culinary capital of the world."

"Dude," Carlos snorted. "I don't know what any of that means, but I do know that my mom is a mom and that automatically makes her the best chef ever!"

"Shall we prove it?" Kendall suggested.

"Yes!" Carlos was jumping up and running out the door before I even blinked.

Kendall chuckled and stood up as well, taking hold of my hand and following after Carlos. We struggled to keep up with him as he ran down the sidewalk. Kendall had to tell him more than once to slow down and wait for us. "He sure has a lot of energy." I commented, watching him pick up his pace to a run again.

"That's Carlos." He shrugged. "You'll get used to it."

I bit back a smile at the implication that he expected to see me a lot more. If I were honest with myself I'd say that I was hoping for the same thing.

It was definitely an interesting experience meeting Carlos' family. I met his mother and three younger brothers. I had also learned that his dad was a cop and was at work at the time. I had expected them all to be hyper and full of energy like Carlos, but they were a lot calmer though just a happy. And Kendall had been right...again. They were the best chocolate chip cookies in the history of the world. Maybe the whole universe! "Just goes to show you that getting a free ride in a fancy car doesn't make you any better than anyone." Kendall said reaching into my to-go bag full of Mrs. Garcia's cookies.

We walked down the sidewalk to who knows where, just talking about anything and everything that came to mind. "Okay, you were right. You're always right. Is that what you wanted to hear?" I teased.

Kendall smirked smugly. "I'm impressed. It usually takes people a lot longer to figure that out." He teased back, throwing an arm around my shoulder.

I laughed at the blond's cockiness, a trait he and James had in common. Though on James, he just came off as obnoxious. Somehow, on Kendall it worked. I couldn't help but compare the two to each other. I had known James for years. We had been dating since we were seventeen—almost five years. I have never gotten along with James or even liked him as much as I did Kendall. Everything with Kendall was so easy and with James...it was all forced.

I wasn't in love with James and I don't think I ever could love him in that way, but I could see myself falling for Kendall.

"What are you thinking about?" Kendall's voice cut into my thoughts.

I looked at him with wide eyes. "Hm?"

"You've been kind of quiet for a while." He pulled me closer to his body and I snuggled even closer. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah," I grinned up at him. "Just...this has been the best sort-of-date I have ever been on."

Kendall grinned back. "Me too."

We stopped walking and just stared at each other. Kendall slowly started to lean in and my breath caught when his lips touched mine. It was short and simple but it sent more sparks through my body than an electric shock. I never felt this way with James. This feeling of weightlessness and elation. I was left in a daze when his lips left mine, but I could still feel them there. "Wow." I breathed, eyes fluttering open to meet the emerald eyes in front of me.

"Was that your first kiss?" Kendall chuckled, cradling my cheek in his hand. I leaned into his touch once again, not even bothered by his teasing now because in so many ways it was my first kiss. We continued to stare into each others eyes. Kendall's were burning with an undeniable intensity as he looked at me. "I have to see you again." He whispered.

"I..." A vibration in my pocket broke us of our moment. I quickly reached for it and saw that it was an incoming call from James. I glared at the picture of my boyfriend flashing across the screen, debating on whether I should answer to see what he wanted or if I should ignore him and show him that I will no longer be at his every beck and call. I fingered the device in my hand, still thinking.

"Who is it?"

"My, uh..." I swallowed looking up at the blond with an apologetic look. "My boyfriend." I answered quietly. I quickly stepped away, averting my gaze, not wanting to see the disappointed look that was sure to be in Kendall's eyes. I finally decided I had nothing left to lose and answered my phone. "Hey, James."

"Sweetheart, where are you?" He didn't sound drunk or anything and the background noise was minimal.

"I'm..." I paused, trying to find the right words to explain. "I went for a walk."

"Honey, it's late. You should come home. I miss you." I sighed heavily. Typical James. Trying to act sweet and innocent one moment and then an inconsiderate jackass the next. "Do you need a ride? I'll come get you."

"No!" I said a little too loudly. "I mean, don't worry about it. I'll just get a cab home."

"A cab?" James almost sounded disgusted.

"It's no big deal, James." I sighed. "I'll see you at home." I hung up before James could say anything else. I stood there a moment longer, afraid of what I might see if I turned around. Would Kendall be sad, angry, disappointed? Possibly a combination of all three.

Maybe Kendall wouldn't even be there.

I let out a breath of relief when I turned around and Kendall was still there. His face was expressionless, which scared me more than anything else I had thought. "I'm sorry," was the first thing out of my mouth.

"Don't worry, I get it."

"Kendall—"

"No, I think I get it." Kendall chuckled though there was no trace of humor in his voice at all. "Your little boyfriend didn't show up for your date, so you decided to do this out of spite!" I let my gaze fall to the ground guiltily. I couldn't deny that it crossed my mind tonight. "God, I can't believe I actually thought you were different." Kendall continued. "You're just like all the other Labels—ignorant, spoiled, manipulative..."

"Wait, a minute." My head shot up, a glare adorning my face. I wasn't about to let him stand there and assume these awful things about me. "You don't know anything about me."

"I know enough." Kendall's face twisted in what looked like disgust. "I'm out of here." The blond shook his head, turning around and walking away from me.

"Kendall!" I called desperately after him, but he didn't turn around. I let out a loud groan of frustration. How could he be so stubborn? He wouldn't even let me explain. Though I didn't have much to explain. What was I going to tell him? That the only reason I didn't tell I had a boyfriend was because I didn't love him, and that I was only with him was because of his family name? Kendall had me pegged pretty well. I wasn't any different from the people I grew up with.

"Taxi!" I waved my hand to catch the passing yellow vehicle. I sighed with relief when it pulled up and quickly climbed in.

"Where are you headed?" The taxi driver's gruff voice asked.

"1614 Treasure View." I told him buckling my seat belt.

"That's a long way out." He responded with a look of surprise as he started driving. "All the way in North Side."

"I have the money."

"I bet you do." He mumbled under his breath, but I could still hear him.

I shook my head, no longer having the energy to put up with insulting comments. Kendall's words had left me more shaken up than I was comfortable with. Maybe this was for the best. Even if Kendall and I had something, my mother would never approve. Dating someone from the other side of town wasn't exactly socially accepted. It was just easier to date James than starting something complicated with Kendall.

After almost forty-five minutes I was arriving outside of the house mine and James' parents had insisted on buying us for our third anniversary. "It will be like you're already married," Mrs. Diamond told us excitedly. It was another subtle hint that they wanted us to tie the knot...and soon.

"1614 Treasure View." The cab driver announced, putting the car in park.

I looked at the meter and saw that I owed him a little over thirty dollars. I dug into my pocket and handed him a fifty. "Keep the change." I mumbled. I pushed my way out of the car, ignoring the man's comments about letting him keep the change. I approached the house, pulling out my key to open the door, only to have the door swing open. I jumped slightly, not expecting James to appear like that. He stood tall in the doorway, brunet hair looking perfect as usual and his smile wide and dazzling. I could see how any one could fall for him. So what was wrong with me? "Hi," I said.

"Hi, darling." James smiled pulling me inside then into a hug.

I cringed at the nickname, truly hating every one of them he used. "Could you stop that, please?"

James leaned back, giving me a confused face. "Stop what, sweetheart?"

"_That! _We've known each other our whole lives, and you calling me sweetheart and darling is just...weird." I frowned, pushing from his embrace and moving to the kitchen.

I could hear James' footsteps behind me. "Logan, I know you don't mean that. You're probably just on edge from me missing dinner." James wrapped his arms around me from behind and kissed my neck affectionately which was weird because James was never this affectionate in private, unless he wanted to entice me into going upstairs.

That must have been it.

I shrugged him off. I wasn't in the mood for this. "Speaking of missing dinner: why did you miss dinner?"

James didn't even seemed fazed by my actions. He just continued to grin at me. "I was meeting with our parents tonight. We lost track of the time. I assumed you would come right home." I scoffed, rolling my eyes at him. "Don't be like that." James leaned forward, pressing his lips to mine. I didn't move. "I promise to make it all up to you tomorrow afternoon."

My forehead wrinkled in confusion. "What's tomorrow afternoon?"

James gave me a face as if to say I were missing something obvious. "Brunch. With our parents and their friends. They've been planning this for weeks. Did you forget?"

I honestly had.

"It's tomorrow at one. Wear something nice."

"Yeah, okay." I breathed, not really caring about the brunch thing.

I opened the bag of cookies I had brought home with me, immediately digging into them. Maybe the best cookies in the history of the world will help me out of my sudden funk. "What's that?"

"Cookies." I answered simply.

James studied the bag, nose wrinkling. "Where did you go?" He stared at it inquisitively. "This isn't any bakery I've ever heard of."

I swallowed, not sure how to explain to James that had gone on a date with a waiter from South Side and that's where I had been this evening. Because as bad of a boyfriend James has been...

He's never cheated on me.

"It's, uh...new." I spoke brokenly. When James continued to give me an odd look, I lost my appetite. "I'm going to go to bed." I tossed away the cookie I was eating and put the others away.

James smirked at me. "Maybe I should join you."

I rolled my eyes again, not bothering to respond to the lewd remark. I went to my bedroom, stripping off my clothes. I didn't bother putting on my pajamas and just climbed into bed. I was so exhausted! Tonight went nothing like I planned. I just expected another boring dinner with James and then to go home. The last thing I expected was to go to the other side of town with a guy I barely knew. Had I learned nothing from my mother when she taught me not to talk to strangers?

Though talking to strangers had taught me a lot more than my mother ever had. Like that I shouldn't date someone just because my parents want me to, or because we 'look good together'. I shouldn't be with someone I don't love and know that I could never love. I should be with someone that makes me laugh, that teaches me new things, that's easy to get along with. I should be with...

But that was too hard! Being with James wasn't a walk in the park but it was easy. No one would give me dirty looks for being with James. No one would judge me for being with James. I rubbed my hands over my face in frustration. But I didn't need easy. My whole life had been easy. I was used to it. Easy might be what I wanted, but maybe Kendall is want I needed.

…

"Logan!" My mother squealed when the house keeper lead us to the living room where brunch was being held.

Everything in the house was just as it was when I was growing up. All the furniture was still an array of whites, off-whites, eggshell...pretty much every other names for white anyone could think of. It was still spotless. My guess, it was thanks to the maid who had been working there since I was a kid, Kelly. The curtains to the windows were left open, letting in the bright sun to make the room even brighter and cleaner than it already was. It also gave a perfect view of the perfect lawn that the gardener-slash-landscaper, Robert (or Buddha Bob as he preferred), worked so hard to maintain. They had even temporarily rehired Gustavo and his waitstaff to prepare today's brunch. So as per usual, my parents never had to lift a finger. My mother smiled widely at me arms outstretched, her expensive white dress and shoes matching perfectly with the furniture, and wine glass already in her hand.

"Hello, mother." I smiled at her, reaching to hug her but her hands stopped me.

"Oh, be careful, honey. This dress wrinkles easily." She giggled.

I sighed, nodding, and settling for a light kiss to each cheek.

No, nothing had changed at all.

"James!" My mother moved to the taller brunet beside me. Her grin had become almost ten times bigger. I tried not to show hurt when she let James hug her and then starting making such a fuss over how good he looked.

I sighed, shaking off bitter feelings. Knowing what happened the last time, I didn't want to end up drunk in front of my parents and their company. Lord knows that I wouldn't want to tarnish their reputation. Just thinking of last night's events reminded of something I had to do. "Mother, where's Gustavo?" I tapped her shoulder.

"In the kitchen, dear. The kitchen." She waved me away before continuing to talk to James.

With a roll of my eyes, I pushed my way through the growing crowd of people in my parent's house as I headed toward the kitchen. I gave Kelly a little wave on my way there, letting her stop me and gush at how much I had grown since she last saw me before I kept going. I entered the room, to see it crowded and busier than ever. The other chefs were sweating, trying to hurriedly prepare dishes that met the satisfaction of their boss, and head chef, Gustavo. Waiters and waitresses were rushing to get the food on a tray and presentation approved by Gustavo to go out the door.

I ducked under trays and dodged people until I made it behind the round man who happened to be yelling at a waiter for making his art look like common diner food. I didn't get a good look at the person's face before he was mumbling, "I'm sorry, Chef Rocque," and ducking away. I took a breath before taking a chance and tapping Gustavo's shoulder.

The angry man whipped his head around, his face still sporting a, what I thought was permanent, frown. "_Logan!_" He shouted, or maybe that was his inside voice. It was hard to tell. "What is the _mutt_ doing _in my kitchen_?"

"Uh, it's nice to see you again, too, Gustavo." I gave him a smile, but he continued to frown at me.

"I saw you yesterday. Now what do you want?"

I didn't waste time getting to my point then. Gustavo obviously wasn't in a good mood...or maybe he was. I've seen him worse. This was probably one of his better days. "I just wanted to tell you that I had one of your employees leave your restaurant early yesterday. So, please don't eat him."

"You WHAT?"

"I'm sorry. It was all my fault and will never happen again. Just...please don't take it out on him." I begged.

"Fine! I don't care. I do, however, care that _you _can't get a simple _fan right!" _I looked at Gustavo confused before I realized that he was talking to a waiter again. "How hard is it to FAN A CHEESE PLATTER? It's _cheese!" _

I looked over Gustavo's shoulder at the boy being scorned. I could feel my eyes growing in size and my jaw unhinging at the sight of the familiar blond hair and green eyes. "Kendall?" I gaped at the blond who was once again dressed in his penguin uniform.

Kendall's head snapped up "Logan?" He sounded surprised. I was as well. I hadn't expected to run into Kendall again, at least not this soon.

Gustavo looked between us, frown deepening and voice growing softer. "Oh I'm sorry. Am I interrupting your big reunion?" His facetious tone was unappreciated.

"Gustavo, this is the waiter I let off last night."

"I _don't _care." The large chef said again, loud and angry tone returning. "_Dog, _out of my kitchen. _Blondie, _you're on napkin duty. Think you can handle that?"

Kendall's eyes closed briefly, taking in a deep breath. I could tell he was getting frustrated but didn't want to show it. He must really need this job. "Yes, sir, Chef Rocque." He sighed.

"Good. Now, get out there and FOLD!"

Gustavo took the tray from Kendall, running it over to another waiter, demanding that he'd be 'more competent than blondie'. Kendall took another deep breath, shooting me a glare before walking out of the kitchen. "Kendall!" I groaned, following after him. I finally caught up with him at the drink table where he was angrily folding napkins. "Kendall, I'm sorry."

"So, I've heard." He mumbled.

"But Kendall..."

"But nothing!" Kendall hissed as he slammed down a napkin and glared at me. "You used me, Logan. For what? To get back at your boyfriend for standing you up on a date?"

"You don't know the whole story."

"I don't care. Nothing justifies what you did to me and I'm done talking about it." Kendall went back to aggressively fold the napkins.

I felt myself pouting when he did this, but then grinned when the light bulb above me head went off. "Kendall..." I gently touched his shoulder to gain his attention. He glanced up at me and I immediately pulled the best Puppy Dog Pout I could manage. "Please?"

Kendall's scowl faltered before he turned his head away. I was almost afraid it wouldn't work, but when Kendall turned back wearing a small smile, I grinned. "Cheap shot." He chuckled.

"But it worked."

"Yeah," Kendall sighed. "But I'm still mad at you. You really hurt me, Logie."

I raised my brows at the nickname. "Logie?"

"Uh..." That adorable blush was back, dusting over his cheeks as he rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly. "Yeah, I kind of just...it's dumb and—"

"I like it." I interrupted him with a reassuring smile. Kendall gave a smile of relief. "So...can we talk now?" Kendall nodded, letting me take hold of his hand and lead him to the guest bathroom. I sighed, shutting the door behind us and locking it. "First of all, you have to know that I had no intentions of hurting you or even having these feelings for you that I do."

Kendall raised a brow at me, a small smirk curling at his lips. "You have feelings for me?"

I was blushing now, laughing softly. "I thought it was obvious."

Kendall shrugged, smirk growing smug. "It was." He took a step closer to me, hands going to my hips. "I just like hearing you say it."

I gasped softly when I felt his lips press to mine. My eyes fluttered shut, hands going to his shoulders to pull him closer. I felt Kendall's teeth nipping at my bottom lip, down my jaw, and back up to my lips to continue our kiss. It was just like the night before except the kiss was longer, more heated. I felt all the sparks and fireworks and more. Kendall's chest was pressed tightly to mine. His hands were roaming all over and seating my body on fire. I was nearly breathless when we finally separated.

Kendall was smirking down at me. I was more than sure that he was enjoying the look of me so flustered from the intensity of the kiss. "So, pretty boy out there—is he your boyfriend?"

It took me a moment to realize he was talking about James. I guess it was obvious. James and I were the youngest people here. "Yeah, he is." I whispered.

Kendall leaned forward, kissing and biting at the sensitive skin around my ear. I shuddered involuntarily, but Kendall held me tightly. "You would really choose him over me?" The blond pulled back, lip poking out slightly in his own version of the puppy dog pout.

"I...I don't know." I told him honestly. "It would be so much easier to be with James considering how I was brought up and my parents." I sighed, looking deep into those green eyes. "Then there's you."

"What about me?"

"You're everything I never knew I wanted...maybe even need." I swallowed. "But you're definitely the riskier choice."

Kendall moved forward to press another kiss to my lips, evicting a small moan from me. "I think I'm worth the risk." He mumbled against my lips.

"I have to..." A kiss. "I have..." Another. "I have to think." I finally got out.

"What's to think about?" Kendall moved back to stare at me, eyes wide and scared. "Unless you love him..."

"No." I answered immediately. "I don't love him, but...it's complicated."

Kendall continued to look at me, that intense gaze was boring into me once again, and I just wished I could tell what he was thinking. He finally sighed, gently running his hand over my cheek. "Take all the time you need." He whispered.

"Really?"

"I can't pressure you into choosing me." Kendall chuckled. "If you want me, I want you to be sure."

I smiled gratefully, pulling the blond into another soft kiss before parting. Kendall allowed me to leave first. He stayed behind, thinking it would be too obvious if the two of us left the bathroom together. I agreed, knowing that everyone at this party loved to gossip. If anyone saw me step out of the bathroom with a member of the waitstaff then they would assume all kinds of crazy things. Even if those things were true, I didn't want my business spreading around the city like a stomach virus.

I strolled back into the living room where my parents, James' parents, and James were all seated on the couch. "Oh, look, there's Logan." My mom was grinning hugely at me.

"Logan, sweetheart, come sit." Mrs. Diamond pulled me into the seat next to her. She was also smiling widely at me. It was actually kind of creepy.

Upon further inspection of the room, I could see everyone crowding around and settling down their own conversations. "What's going on?" My forehead was wrinkled in confusion as I continued to study the situation.

"James, has an announcement." Mrs. Diamond whispered to me, still smiling.

"Okay..." I looked to James, wondering what all the fuss was about.

James cleared his throat, flashing his million watt smile at everyone. "I would first like to thank all of you for coming. It means so much to me that you could be here to share this moment with me and I'm sure Logan will feel the same." James turned to me then. "Logan, I've known you since we were three, we've been dating since we were seventeen, and I can't imagine myself with anyone else. So, what I'm asking today is..."

My eyes would have fallen out of my sockets if it were possible as I watched James fall to one knew in front of me. "James..." I whispered.

He went on, pulling a ring from the jacket of his blazer. "Logan, will you-"

"Please, stop." I could feel the tears coming, and I knew I wouldn't be able to stop them from falling.

James kept going, my protests going unheard. "-marry me?"

I heard a small chorus of aw's from somewhere in the room and my mom and Mrs. Diamond were squealing, urging me to say yes, but all I could focus on was the blond that had just walked out of the bathroom, looking at the scene with sad eyes as he trudged off to the back of the room where the bar was.

I looked back to James and everyone else, who all looked at me expectantly. I swallowed, eyes traveling back to James. "Yes," I whispered almost inaudibly.

James leaned closer. "What as that?"

"I said, yes." I responded louder, not able to hide the annoyance I felt in my voice.

"He said yes!" Mrs. Diamond squealed.

"My baby's getting married!" My mom's voice came next. The room erupted in cheers, and glasses were clinking, everyone started extending congratulations to my parents. Not James and I, the people who were just engaged, but my parents.

I sighed, looking to James who wore an unreadable expression as he slipped the ring on my finger. The moment felt strange. I wasn't as happy as I thought I would have been during this moment. I didn't feel anything close to how someone who just got proposed to should feel. James offered a small smile, and I tried my best to return it, but it was hard with all the guilt weighing down on me.

We left the brunch shortly after, using the excuse of wanting to be alone to finally convince our parents to let us leave. We rode home in silence. I knew I had to talk to James as soon as we got home. I couldn't keep this up any longer. I wasn't going to marry someone I didn't love, but James was acting especially odd. He was usually so talkative, talking about anything and everything that came to his mind—which, more often than not, had something to do with his clothes or his hair. I was curious to know what was on his mind.

As soon as we walked in the door, I decided to get to the point. "We have to talk."

That wasn't me. I was shocked to hear the words leave James' mouth before I could even open mine. "Yeah, we do." I agreed after composing myself.

"I don't want to beat around the bush with this, so I'm just gonna say it." James sighed, looking uneasy. "We're friends, Logan, and I care about you a lot..."

"I care about you, too, James, but..."

"I don't love you."

We stared at each other as if we couldn't believe that we the other had just said that. I finally laughed, feeling a weight lift off my shoulders. "You don't know how relieved I am to hear that, James."

"Same here." James smiled.

I sighed, falling onto the couch and letting my body relax. James joined me on the other end, looking much happier himself. "James," I spoke up after a minute of silence. The pretty boy looked to me with raised brow. "If you don't love me, then why did you propose?"

James laughed to himself, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly. "I had a plan to scare you off." I raised my brow at him this time. "I thought if I tired to take things to such a serious level, you would break up with me."

My forehead wrinkled in thought. "So, wait..._that's _why you always acted like such a jackass? Flirting with girls, ditching me, trying to seduce me? You wanted me to break up with you!"

"It was dumb, I know." James laughed. "I never wanted to really hurt you; you're my friend, but no matter what I did, you stayed. I thought you were in love with me."

"To be perfectly honest, James, only stayed with you because it's what our parents wanted." Logan sighed. "When we first started dating I thought that maybe I could fall for you, and over time, I still kind of hoped I would because it would be easier to marry you." James nodded in understanding, probably having gone through the same thing. "But James...I think I love someone else." I blushed, knowing it was way too early to be in love with Kendall, but I fell fast and fell hard.

James gave an incredulous look. "Who?" His tone sounded slightly jealous, but I knew he was just looking out for me. It was one of the great things about the real James, my best friend James.

I shrugged. "He's a guy I met, and he's so wonderful." I smiled to myself. "He isn't anything like the guys we know. He isn't spoiled or materialistic. He can find a reason to smile about everything and when I'm with him..." I hated the girly sigh I let out, but I couldn't help it. "It's just indescribable, James."

James was studying me with questioning eyes. If I could look at my own face, it would probably look like that of a love-struck school girl. I was surprised that James wasn't laughing at me. "So, do I know this guy?" James finally asked.

I shook my head.

James' brows knitted together. "I know every eligible bachelor in North Side. I have to. There can't be anyone prettier than me and giving me competition."

I snorted, shaking my head. "He doesn't live here, James. You're still the prettiest boy in North Side." I reassured him.

James chuckled before turning serious again. "Where does he live then?"

"South Side." I bit my lip.

James eyes widened. "When did you go to South Side?" He exclaimed.

I bit my lip again. "Last night."

Those hazel eyes were wide as saucers as he stared at me. "You've only known this guy for a _day _and you're already in love with him?" James' voice screeched. "You've known me your whole life!"

"And I've never been in love with you." I said with a smirk. I knew James wasn't jealous because I was in love with another guy. He was just being his normal, arrogant self, not able to accept that someone wouldn't fall in love with him. He only further proved my point when he started to pout. "Aw, James." I chuckled, giving him a friendly peck on the lips. "You're just not my type."

"I'm everybody's type!" James continued to pout.

I rolled my eyes. "Just think of it this way, you were trying to repel me. If you had given me the full extent of your charms, I might have fallen for you."

James looked thoughtful for a moment, then he face broke out into a grin. "I'm better now." I rolled my eyes again. A gently stroke of the ego and James was himself again. "So what now?"

I thought for a minute before standing. "I have to find Kendall."

"Kendall?"

"I have to explain to him that I'm not engaged and definitely not in love with you." I shuffled around to find my keys. I would have laughed at the look on James' face at the use of the word 'definitely' if I weren't in such a hurry. I finally found my keys and was running for my car.

"Wait," James was running behind me, jumping into the passenger seat. "I'm coming with you."

"James, you don't have to."

The pretty boy scoffed. "Like I'm going to let you go to South Side alone."

I laughed to myself as I started the car.

Like James would be any protection at all.

"This place isn't so bad." James said though his voice was high and panicked, and his body was tense as we walked into the diner.

I smiled to myself. James was such coward sometimes. When we first got here, I wasn't sure where to start to look for Kendall. I didn't know if Gustavo had him working for another catering gig or if he were still at work or if he went back home after the brunch was over. I didn't even know where his home was. I finally decided that his mom's diner was a good place to start. I looked around for a familiar face, which was pretty hard. I only knew a few other people, and didn't know the odds of running into any of them were.

"So, what does this Kendall guy look like?" James asked, peering around the room, probably looking for anyone who was just slightly better looking than him.

I rolled my eyes, ignoring James for now. My eyes continued to scan over the restaurant until they landed on a red-headed woman. I let out a breathe of relief when I spotted Kendall's mom cleaning off a table. "Jen," I called to her.

She looked up and I gave a small wave. "Hey, hun." She grinned widely at me. I wasn't expecting her to come right over and pull me into a tight hug. My own mother didn't even do that. Despite my surprised I managed to wrap my own arms around her and return the gesture. "How are you?" Jen pulled away, still smiling widely at me.

"I'm great, Jen. Thank you." I was still a little thrown off by the hug. "I-is Kendall here?"

"Ooh, are you here for another date?" Jen nudged me playfully with her elbow.

I blushed and before I could say anything James was over my shoulder. "_Another _date? You went on a date with him too?"

"James," I groaned, rolling my eyes again. I didn't have time for his ego. As much as I missed my ridiculous best friend, he was still ridiculous.

"Oh, who's this?" Jen gave a small wave to James.

"Jen, this is my friend..."

James once again interrupted me, extending his hand to Jen. "James Diamond." He gave his usually charming smile to the woman.

"Diamond?" Jen paused, raising a brow. "As in the son of Brooke Diamond of Brooke Diamond Cosmetics?"

"The very same." James was smirking now. He loved being recognized by the public.

Jen's eyes darted back to me, mouth slightly agape. "So, that would make you..."

I shrugged. "Logan Mitchell." Jen looked between us. I could see the gears turning in her head as she pieced together the bits and pieces of this meeting. "Look, it isn't like that anymore, and that's why I need to find Kendall. Is he here?"

Jen looked behind us when the bell over the door rang. James and I turned around also to see Kendall and Carlos walking in. Kendall's back was turned to us, telling Carlos about something. Carlos was the first to notice us, tapping Kendall, and pointing over his shoulder to us. Kendall turned around, eyes locking on mine immediately. His eyes shifted to James, giving him a glare before turning around and leaving.

"Kendall, wait!" I called, running behind him. I caught him easily, pulling him to a stop.

"What now?" He snapped at me.

"I'm not gonna marry James!"

I watched those green eyes soften and stare at me in wonder. "You're not?"

"No." I felt my lips turn upward into a smile at the look on the blond's face. "I can't be with someone I don't love."

"But what about James?"

"He doesn't love me either." I shrugged.

Kendall looked to still be processing the information. "So...it's over between you guys? ...Just like that?" He raised a large brow, making me giggle.

"Just like that." Kendall let out a breath, forehead wrinkled in thought. He opened his mouth again, and I was sure he was about to ask another question but I stopped him with a kiss. I smiled into the kiss when Kendall's body relaxed and his arms wrapped around my middle, bringing our bodies closer together. I pulled back, letting out another laugh at the look on Kendall's face. "I promise to explain the whole thing later, but the choice was obvious. It always was. I just didn't want things to progress with us before they ended with James. I care about you both way too much to hurt either of you. Understand?" Kendall nodded dumbly, pulling me into another kiss. I smiled into the lip-lock, feeling myself falling harder for Kendall with every passing moment.


	2. Chapter 2

"Eat up." Jen instructed affectionately, placing a plate of fish sticks and tater tots in front of Kendall.

"Thanks, mom," Kendall kissed the auburn haired woman's cheek. "How much do I owe you?"

"No, no." Jen stopped him from reaching into his pocket. "It's on the house."

"But mom..."

"No buts." Jen said firmly but with a smile. "I may be a waitress, but I'm mom first. It's my job to take care of you." She cooed as she pinched his cheeks.

Kendall winced, cheeks flushing in embarrassment. "Mom!" The green eyes darted to me before going back to his mom.

"Oops, sorry." Jen released her hold. "I didn't mean to embarrass you in front of your _boyfriend_."

I chuckled as Kendall's cheeks grew a darker shade of red. The blond tried to laugh it off, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly. "Mom..." He mumbled, clearly still embarrassed.

Jen raised her hands, signaling she was backing off then turned to me. "Logan, are you sure I can't get you anything?"

"No, thank you, Jen."

"Are you sure? We're not that busy since that new diner opened up." Jen's tone was sad as she sat in the seat across from me and Kendall.

It was then I noticed that the usually busy diner was now nearly empty, a few seats being occupied by me, Kendall, James, Carlos, and a man at the bar drinking coffee. My brow furrowed in confusion. "A new diner opened up?"

Jen nodded sadly. "Some rich guy, money-flaunting, North Side fatcat Label built a diner one street over, and it's been stealing all of mom's business." Kendall explained then turned to me with wide eyes. "No offense or anything. I'm not calling you, uh, I mean—"

I kissed Kendall to silence his rambling, smirking at the blush that still covered his cheeks when I pulled away. "I'm really sorry to hear that." I turned back to Jen with a somber smile. "Is there anything you can do?"

Jen sighed, leaning back into the booth. "Not really. The owner of the new diner made me an offer, and if this this place doesn't make enough money in time to pay the rent, I'll have no choice but to sell."

"What?" Kendall sat up abruptly, looking horrified by this news. I was surprised myself. Jen loved this place, and I could tell she put her heart and soul into it. Kendall told me it was her dream to own a restaurant. When his dad died, he left enough money for Jen to 'go for it'. Kendall and his little sister had been eating here since they were young. It was a family business. Kendall has expressed to me many times that he had plans to take over the diner one day, and the bright smile that spread across Jen's face when he said it was blinding.

I can't believe she would even think about selling.

"Kendall, I have to make rent and take care of Katie."

"But if you sell you won't have a job!"

"I'll get a job, Kendall. Stop worrying."

"But I was going to take over the diner someday. What happened to that?" The pleading look in Kendall's eyes was heart-breaking.

Jen frowned, reaching across the table to run a hand through Kendall's golden locks. "I'm sorry, baby." She said sadly. "As much I would love to keep it in the family, it doesn't look like an option right now." She slowly stood, walking away with her head hung lower.

I nearly cried when Kendall slumped into his seat, appetite clearly lost when his only picked at his food. I grabbed his arm to catch his attention, giving a look that expressed my empathy. Kendall smiled appreciatively but I could still see a hint of sadness behind it. "Kendall...maybe there's something I could do."

Kendall looked at me with curious eyes. "What could you do?"

"I don't know." I shrugged. "Maybe I could lend her something..."

"No." Kendall shook his head. "I can't let you do that, and she won't let you either." Kendall wrapped his arm around me. "I've told you before that I don't like you for your money."

"And I know that, but I can still—"

"No, Logan." Kendall interrupted with a firm shake of his head. "We can figure this out."

I sighed then chuckled. "I forgot how stubborn your family can be." That got a little smile out of him. "But what do you think you should do?"

"I don't know." Kendall frowned, picking at the food on his plate again. "Can we please change the subject?"

"Okay." I nodded, letting out a breath to relax myself. "So," I grinned at Kendall. His arms tightened around my shoulders, pulling me closer to his side and leaving even more available room in the booth we were sharing. "James and Carlos seem to be getting close these past few weeks."

Kendall finally smirked, looking over at our two friends who were sharing a plate full of corndogs. "Yeah. Carlos usually doesn't share food. He must like James a lot." Kendall laughed.

I smiled fondly at the pair, head resting on Kendall's shoulder. "And I've never seen James smile like that at anyone." I replied softly, watching James laughing genuinely at something Carlos said.

"You're not jealous, are you?" Kendall looked down at me, an amused smile playing at his lips, but there was a hint of insecurity in his eyes.

I smiled, knowing I was falling deeper in love with him with every passing moment. "No." I answered without even a hint of doubt in my mind. I wrapped my arms around his torso, snuggling impossibly closer to his body. "I told you I don't love James."

I expected a smile to spread across that gorgeous face. I expected him to maybe blush and mumble something incoherent while trying to hide his reddening face, but instead he just frowned, turning to his plate on the table. My smile dropped, looking at the blond curiously. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing." He grumbled.

"It's not nothing." I sat up, successfully removing myself from his hold, making my boyfriend sigh. "What's up?" I prodded again. "Are you thinking about the diner again?"

"No..." Kendall sighed again. "It's just...when I was at work last night, Gustavo had the cooking staff going over a list of menu items."

My brow furrowed in confusion. "What's wrong with that?"

"It was for your wedding." Kendall said sharply, casting a small glare at the food in front of him. My mouth was open in a slight 'o' when I caught on. "Why haven't you told your parents that you and James aren't getting married?"

I struggled to find words. "I-I..." It wasn't going well. "Kendall, I'm not the bold drunk man you met a month ago. I can't just go up to my parents and tell them that the moment they've been waiting for is a lie."

"Are you seriously going to go along with this just to make your parents happy?" Kendall stared at me in disbelief. "What's more important, Logie? Your happiness or theirs?"

The question caught me off guard for a moment. I had never really thought about what was more important, just what was easy. I thought I would have learned by now; easy wasn't always what was best. I gulped, feeling nervousness take over. "M-mine, but..."

"Look, I know I told you I wasn't going to pressure, but this isn't even about us anymore. This is about you standing up to your parents."

I shifted awkwardly in my seat, Kendall's words hitting a nerve. I wasn't the same inebriated, confident guy he met three months ago. I was shy and reserved. The can was open and there were worms everywhere. "I-I never done that before."

Kendall finally chuckled. "I figured as much." He smirked, stroking my cheek lovingly. "Your whole essence screams mama's boy."

I glared playfully at him, swatting his hand away. As if he weren't a mama's boy himself. Did he forget that we were, in fact, sitting in his mother's diner right now where as soon as we stepped in he got a big hug and a free plate of fish sticks and tots—which I still found odd because I had never eaten fish and potatoes in such a way. Gustavo would never serve it that way.

I sighed, mind going back to the original subject. "It's just...this is the first time I've ever done something she showed some enthusiasm over. When I graduated high school, got into college, graduated pre-med...she never even blinked."

Kendall was frowning at me again. I could tell he didn't get how two people who created a life out of love couldn't show it. "That's really sad, Logie."

I shrugged. "It is what it is." I mumbled. "It's not that I'm ashamed of you. Please, never think that, but I just know if my parents found out, they would flip a shit."

I waited for Kendall to comment, but he instead pulled me into a hug, kissing my temple tenderly. He held me there for a few more moments, just rubbing my back soothingly. "You cussed." He finally said.

I paused, going back over my words in my head, then chuckled. "I guess I did."

"You like...never cuss."

"I don't, usually. Mother says it isn't polite."

Kendall snorted above me. "Mama's boy."

I once again glared at him, slapping his chest half-heartedly before pecking him on the lips. I finally got that smile I had been expecting all along. It was wide and I could see his dimples perfectly. His eyes crinkled at the sides and those green orbs were brighter than ever. The look alone was enough to put a smile on my face. "I'll tell them."

Kendall's eyes brightened even more. "Really?"

"I'm having dinner with them tonight. I'll tell them then."

"Do you need me there? Is Gustavo catering? I can convince him to let me—"

"No, I can do it." I laughed but was very grateful for the blond's offer. "Thank you." I kissed his cheek, scooting out of the booth. "I better get going now." Kendall nodded, standing with me and giving me a small peck which turned into another peck that turned into a long kiss then a longer kiss. Kendall was pulling me closer, my arms encircling around his neck and his hands slowly slipping up my shirt and ghosting over my skin.

I had to suppress a whimper as I pulled back, feeling heat rushing to my cheeks at the sight of Kendall's lust filled gaze directed at me. "Sorry," I whispered, taking a step back, making Kendall's hands fall.

Kendall seemed to snap out of his daze with a chuckle. "It's okay." He smirked, and I swear I saw his eyes scanning over me. "I'll wait."

I blushed again, knowing that he knew it would only be a matter of time before I broke. I couldn't keep resisting him, and if I was honest with myself, I didn't want to. "James, come on." I finally said, tearing my gaze from Kendall's causing the blond to let out a chuckle.

"Aw!" I heard Carlos whine from their spot across the diner. Kendall and I laughed at the two as we watched them reluctantly say good bye to one another, sharing a hug that went on a little long. My eyes widened in surprise when Carlos leaned up, kissing James' cheek. I looked to Kendall who looked equally shocked before James followed me out the door to my car.

I smirked at him as he buckled his seat belt. James finally caught glance of my look when he saw that the car wasn't moving yet. "What?" His eyes shifted around the car, as if the reason for my staring would be found somewhere in it.

My smirk grew, moving the put the car in gear. "You and Carlos, huh?"

I looked back at James, wanting to squeal with excitement at the blush covering his face. "Shut up." He said.

I laughed, pulling out into the street. The car ride back to out house was filled with teasing and light-hearted conversations, that made me feel just like our friendship never skipped a beat. On the way home I also told James about the diner putting Jen out of business.

"That's terrible!" James responded. "I love going there to hang out with you, Carlos, and Kendall."

I resisted the urge to tease him about Carlos as I pulled into the garage. "I know, and Mrs. Knight is acting so indifferent about it. I know she must be as torn up as Kendall."

"I wish there was something we could do."

"Me too," I sighed, climbing from the car. "But Kendall is way too stubborn to let us give them the money."

"Well, maybe we could..." James trailed off as we made our way in the house. All the lights were off and we couldn't even see our hands in front of our faces.

I blindly felt the for the light switch and flipped it on when I found it. "SURPRISE!" A large crowd jumped up, filling out home with noise and laughter. I truly was surprised to see that my parents had used their spare key to enter my home and set up a surprise engagement party for James and I.

I was gaping almost comically at the party. I turned to James to see that he was shocked as well as a bit uneasy. It was completely out of the ordinary for our parents to do something like this for someone. "Are you surprised, honey?" My mom emerged from the crowd, holding a glass of champagne.

"Uh...yeah..." I looked around at the people, they were all out parents' colleagues, friends, and some other people I didn't even know. "Mother, why..."

"Logan, it's the perfect way for you and James to talk about the wedding and show off this ring." She whispered to me, lifting my left hand to show the flashy ring James had gotten for me.

I sighed. I should have known. This whole _engagement _wasn't about us in the first place. "Mother, I don't..." My mother shushed me, pushing me and James into the crowd of people, muttering for us to be adorable. James glanced apologetically at me with a shrug and I could only sigh again.

This is not how I expected tonight to go at all. I expected a simple dinner with our parents. We would talk about the wedding and my father's new business plans. Daddy was a wealthy man his whole life. Lucky for him, he inherited his father's fortune and was taught well on how to keep it. He knows all about stocks and watches the financial updates every day. He was an expert of when it was time to pull out. He invested in three big businesses and was partial owner of almost twice as many other businesses. His money made money.

My mom never had a job as far as I knew. She never worked a day in her life and was lucky enough to marry well. My mom always told me, "You can never go wrong if you marry right."

Now, surrounded by all of their friends and business partners, I was even more nervous to tell them the truth. James' dad was one of my dad's business partners, and that's how our parents became friends. I have a theory that they always planned to marry their children off, that when I was born Mr. and Mrs. Diamond hoped for a girl but got James. That's why he's so pretty.

And perhaps why they were so thrilled when they found out we both liked men.

I remember how scared I was to tell my parents that I was gay. They weren't the most understanding people in the world. I expected my mom to faint and my dad to immediately cut me off and disown me. Imagine my surprise when they just smiled widely and told me they understood. I couldn't believe it happened, but I was happy. I couldn't help the deja vu feeling I got from this. Telling them about Kendall was feeling a lot like the moment I came out, but what were the odds that they would respond so positively to this too. Coming out to them was hard enough, but I had to do this for Kendall.

I separated myself from James and the group of women begging to hear the story of our engagement—a story we had told three times already—and found my mom. She was beside my dad, chatting excitingly about something with Mr. Diamond and a few of dad's other partners. I slowly slid beside her, waiting patiently for her to finish, but upon seeing me, her entire focus shifted. "Logan!" She squealed, pulling me closer to her. My eyes went wide in surprise. Mother was never this affectionate towards me. It was odd, but not unappreciated.

"You all know my son, Logan—recently engaged to James Diamond." I rolled my eyes. I shouldn't be surprised that she would take every opportunity given to her to show off to someone about this. My mom turned back to me, grinning widely. "Logan, show them the ring."

"Mother, I really-"

"Show them."

"That's what I wanted to talk to you about. I-"

"Hortense!" My mom shot a small glare at me but was smiling through gritted teeth. "_Show them the ring._"

I sighed, lifting my hand to show the ring to the people there. They took a moment to appreciate it, making some off hand comments about the diamond being small and James being as cheap as his father. The adults around me laughed at the joke, continuing to make playful jabs at Mr. Diamond. I sighed again when my mom walked off with them to go find James to ask him something.

I turned around to face my dad, smiling when he clapped a hand on my shoulder. "Hello, son." He grinned.

I chuckled. "Hi, daddy—I mean, dad." I quickly corrected myself. He never said anything, but I could tell my dad hated it when I called him daddy. It was something I child did, and if someone still did it at my age, they were usually women.

My dad nodded in approval. "So, are you excited about your wedding?" He questioned. "You know your mom and Mrs. Diamond want you two at the alter as soon as possible. They already booked a hall, you know." He informed me while taking a sip of his drink.

My eyes went wide for the hundredth time that night, removing myself from under my dad's hold. "Are you serious?" I almost screamed.

"Yeah, the date is like two weeks from now."

I couldn't breathe. The air had gotten thinner and I wasn't taking enough of it in my lungs. "I need some air." I finally got out, rushing out of the house and onto the porch where I started taking in deep breaths. I want to say that after I could finally breathe, I was calm, but I wasn't. How could our moms do this? How could they book a wedding—_my _wedding—two weeks from now? And worst, hoe could they neglect to tell the people who are actually getting married? I was running my hands through my hair in frustration as these questions and so many other thoughts were running through my head. The one that stood out most was...how was I going to tell Kendall?

"Logan?" I turned around when the front door opened and shut again. James had stepped out onto the porch, looking as stressed as I was. He rushed to my side, concern flashing through his eyes at the sight of my frustrated tears. "Are you okay?"

"No, James, I'm not." I shook my head. How could he think I was okay after hearing about something like that?

"I take it you heard?"

I nodded. "How could they do this?"

"I don't know." James sighed, leaning against the pillar. "But should we really be all that surprised? Our moms are kind of turning this into their wedding."

"But James, they're planning a wedding that we don't even plan on going through with." I ran my hands over my face, breathing a heavy sigh. "I have to tell them tonight." My mind was set. I had waited too long to tell them this and now I had to. Despite this, I was still nervous. Maybe if I dug deep enough I could find drunken Logan's confidence and make use of it in my sobriety.

"Are you going to tell them about Kendall too?" James questioned.

"Depends," I smirked at him. "Are you going to tell them about Carlos?"

Even in the dark I could see the blush appearing on James' cheeks. "There's nothing to tell."

I rolled my eyes at his obvious lie but didn't push him anymore. I needed to focus on the situation at hand. Closed my eyes and inhaled deeply, but I knew no amount of time and deep breaths would prepare me for this. My mind was reeling with different scenarios of how this could play out. The best was my mom and James' mom accepting that we weren't in love and never will be, the worst was mother having a heart attack because she couldn't take another disappointment from me.

"Nervous?" James' voice broke into my thoughts once again.

"No, this is gonna be easy." I joked with a shrug. James chuckled, moving to go back inside, but I grabbed his hand, pulling him back to my side. "As long as you don't leave me."

James smiled softly at me, pulling my into his chest in a hug. I wrapped my arms around him tightly, fisting the back of his shirt. "You're my best friend, Logan. We're in this together." When James pressed his lips to my forehead a flash went off, startling us both and making us jump apart.

"This is the perfect picture to go on the wedding invitations." Mrs. Diamond grinned excitedly, showing the camera to my mother.

"And the magazines will just eat it up." My mom added.

I rolled my eyes, holding back a noise of disgust. I can't believe they actually planned on selling that picture to a magazine for publicity. This was starting to go too far. "Mom, we need to talk."

"Yes, sweetheart, we do...inside...where all the very important people are." Mrs. Diamond nodded in agreement and they moved to leave to porch and go back inside.

"But mom-" James tried but was once again interrupted.

"Listen, boys. You may think this party is for you, but it's not; it's for us. It's so that we can kiss the asses of these rich people." My jaw unhinged at the firm tone my mother was using. She never spoke like that to me, and she I've never heard her swear before. When the initial shock wore off, I was left feeling anger. I knew she thought that all along, but maybe part of me was hoping I was wrong about her. "Now get in there because you can't stay on the porch-"

"Mother, I'm not marrying James!" I finally let out.

Mrs. Diamond looked shocked and my mother just lifted her brow skeptically. "Is that so?" She crossed her arms over her chest, lips pursed in that firm motherly way.

I faltered a bit but stood my ground when James squeezed his shoulder in a supportive way. "Yes, mother. There's no way I can go through with this. I don't love James."

I watched my mother eye me for a moment. Mrs. Diamond's brow rose as she stared skeptically as well. The two women then turned to each other just as they burst into laughter. James and I turned to each other with confused looks. James only shrugged at me. "Baby, you are so cute." My mother approached me, pinching both of my cheeks.

My forehead wrinkled at this. "Cute?" Where did that come from?

"Yes, honey," Mrs. Diamond walked over to James. "It's cute that you think you have to be in love to get married."

I looked to my mom to see she was nodding in agreement with Mrs. Diamond. I moved my mom's hands from my face, giving her a disbelieving look. I looked to James to see he was in just as much shock as I was. "Mother, you can't be serious." I my tone was slightly pleading as I said this. "Why would someone get married if they aren't in love?"

My mom smacked her lips, rolling her eyes at me. "Oh, Hortense, don't act so naive." She was glaring at me. I knew from the use of my first name that she was done playing games, and was putting her foot down. Mother had always been stubborn. She always approached a situation with kind eyes and a gentle smile, but as soon as a conversation seemed to be going in the opposite direction of the way she wanted, she would turn cold and do almost anything to get her way. I had seen her do it so many times in my life that I was almost afraid of it. "People marry for all kinds of reasons; love has nothing to do with it anymore."

"But mom, you love dad, right?" James turned to his mother.

"Very rarely do two people end up in a happy marriage. Sometimes to make your marriage work, you have to just smile and grit your teeth. Otherwise it's just pointless." James blinked in surprise, sputtering out random words in order to respond. When nothing coherent came, Mrs. Diamond placed a hand on James' shoulder to silence him. "James, some things are more important than love." Mrs. Diamond smiled a small smile, running her fingers through James' hair.

I scoffed, never having felt more disgusted with my parents than I had at that moment. "Like what—money and status?"

"Of course." Mother and Mrs. Diamond chorused.

I could feel the anger bubbling inside me once again. I couldn't believe that after all of this they still planned on making us go through with it just to get richer and make names for themselves. I couldn't even form words to tell my mother how disappointed I was. I felt my mom swipe her thumb across my cheek, wiping a tear, and giving a faux pout as if she was sorry for what was happening. I hadn't even realized that frustrated tears had gathered in my eyes until then. "It will all be alright, dear." She said softly.

I wrenched my head away from her hand causing her to frown and narrow her eyes. I turned my gazed away, not able to look at her right now. "I suggest you two get inside. We do still have guests to entertain." She turned on her heel, sauntering to the door, Mrs. Diamond blowing us a kiss before she followed.

When the door shut, we were enveloped in silence. I looked to James to see him staring blankly in front of him. He seemed to be trying to take it all in. His mom had practically come right out and tell him that she didn't love his dad, and she never had. That can be tough for someone of any age to hear about their parents.

But what kind of parents would want the same for their kids? The only people who would benefit from this marriage is them. James and I didn't care about money or how we were labeled—or at least I didn't. I always knew my mother was a spoiled woman and often selfish when it came to...really anything, but this was a new low.

I looked up when James shifted, adjusting and dusting off his clothes. "What are you doing?" I asked in confusion.

"We'd better get back inside." He said, moving to the door.

My eyes wide, not believing what I was hearing. "James, we can't go along with this!"

"You heard them, Logan. It's pointless!"

"It's not pointless!" I tried to reason with him. "You don't want to be trapped in a loveless marriage, do you?"

"It's not loveless. We're friends. We love each other."

"You know what I mean."

"Yes, and we were in a relationship for years and we were fine."

My eyes narrowed at the brunet, fist clenched sternly. I could be as stubborn as my mother if I tried. "I wasn't happy. Did you forget that our 'relationship' is what started all this? I wouldn't even have met Kendall if it wasn't for that." I sighed, tears gathering in my eyes once again. "I spent half of that night staring at every happy couple around me and just hating their guts for having what I wanted. Now, I have it and you want me to just give it up?"

James sighed as well. "Be realistic, Logan." He threw his hands up in frustration. "This is the life we live in, and nothing about it is going to change any time soon. So let's just grit our teeth and deal with it."

"I am _not _going to marry you, James."

"We're not talking about forever...just until our parents die." I stared incredulously at him before chuckling lightly. "Sadly, Logan, not everyone is going to come out of this happy."

"Better them unhappy than us." I huffed. "You don't think it's a little odd that we're grown men, and we can't stand up to our parents?"

James stared at me, brow quirked. "That sounds like something Kendall would say."

I blushed, rubbing the back of my neck. "He might of said something like it..." James chuckled at me. "But that doesn't make it any less true. I can't hurt Kendall like that, and what about Carlos?" I watched as James' eyes went downcast. "We have to stand up for ourselves."

James was silent for a long time. Finally he nodded, grabbing my hand as we made our way inside. We jostled our way through the people crowding our home, looking for our parents. We finally found them around another group of of my dad's business partners. They were laughing and congratulating Mr. Diamond on another good deal.

"Who knew something so simple would make so much money?" Mr. Diamond laughed as he approached.

"Dad, I have to talk to you." James said firmly.

"James!" His dad completely ignored him, wrapping his arms around the tall brunet's shoulders and pulling him into his body. "Did you hear, son? I started a new business."

I rolled my eyes, not surprised by this at all. "That's great, dad." James said in a disinterested tone.

"Yes, it's not something I'd usually invest my money in, but it's turned out to make me quite a bit of money."

"Dad, I actually-"

"Who knew a diner on Fifth Avenue would be so successful?"

James and I froze, glancing worriedly at each other. "Wait, _you _opened the diner on Fifth Avenue?" I questioned.

"Yeah," Mr. Diamond laughed. "Those hood rats don't look like much but they sure can eat." The group around us laughed, clinking their wine-filled glasses together.

I glared at the cocky man, taking a small step forward. "Those people are _not _hood rats." I defended. "They're decent people who have to work twice as hard as we do to get half as much. Did you ever stop to think that you might be putting some of those hardworking people out of business?"

"Logan, that's how business works." Mr. Diamond smirked. "If you can't run with the big dogs, you'd better stay on the porch."

I rolled my eyes as the other adults laughed with Mr. Diamond. I was becoming too tired to deal with their ignorance. "You're disgusting." I spat, glaring at the taller man.

Mr. Diamond's smile fell, and I could see my mother and Mrs. Diamond glaring at me from over his shoulder. "Hortense!" Mother hissed, stomping toward me with a gritted smile. She grabbed my arm tightly, nails digging into my arm, and making me wince slightly. "You stop this degenerate behavior right this instant." She whispered harshly to me.

I frowned, biting my lip to keep from screaming.

"You know, I'm taking in a lot more money now. I think I'll splurge." Mr. Diamond reached into his pocket, pulling out a five dollar bill in tossing it at me. "Send this to your hardworking South Side friends." He said with a smug grin.

My jaw was clenched tightly as I watched the bill fall to the floor in front of me. Before I could do or say something I would regret, I reached behind me where a waiter was carrying a tray of drinks and grabbed one, downing the whole thing in one gulp. I knew my mother had always taught me not to drink too much in public, but fuck it. I needed this.

James put a hand on my shoulder which I glared at before turning back to his dad. "Dad, I really have to tell you-"

"You know, James," Mrs. Diamond interrupted her son, and I shot her a glare as well as I grabbed another drink. "With all the extra money, you could finally get that personal hair salon you've always wanted—right here in your own house."

I watched in shock as James' eyes brightened with interest. He was actually considering it! I bit my lip again, shoving James and my mother off of me and going to flag down another waiter carrying a tray of drinks.

"Mitchell, you should really keep a leash on your son." I could hear Mr. Diamond laugh from behind me as I walked away.

…

I has leaning against the door, clumsily knocking on the wood. I maybe had a little more to drink than I first anticipated, but I was just that pissed. I continued to knock, I wasn't sure if I was doing it loud enough. My arm was just kind of lifting lazily and my fist was flopping against the door. When the door opened, I nearly fell, luckily I was caught by a pair of strong arms. I looked up into the green eyes and smiled. "Hey, Kendall."

Kendall's brows were furrowed in confusion. I knew he wanted to ask a ton of questions at this moment, but he chose not to instead shifting my body so he could help me inside. He guided me over to his couch, gently depositing me there. "Logie, are you alright?" He took a moment to look over my appearance, subtly checking my body for any kind of injury. I smiled to myself, seeing him so worried over me.

I grabbed his hands, smiling gently at him. "I'm fine. Just a little drunk." I giggled.

"Did you drive here?" He sounded horrified, falling onto the couch by my feet.

"No, I took the bus." I rolled my eyes. I may be drunk, but I wasn't stupid.

Kendall let out a breath, eyes still slightly worried as he looked at me. "What are you doing here?"

I frowned, remembering the reason I downed so much alcohol in the first place, and why I then went up to my bedroom, climbed out the window, and took a bus to my boyfriend's apartment. "My parents are dicks." I mumbled.

Kendall's brows shot up in surprise, and I almost laughed at how this situation was so similar to the night we first met. "I take it dinner didn't go well then." He sighed.

"My mother and Mrs. Diamond pushed the wedding up to two weeks from now." I didn't miss the horrified look on Kendall's face. "And when I told them that I refuse to marry James, they laughed at me." I spat.

"Laughed?" Kendall's forehead was wrinkled in confusion.

"Yeah, they laughed, and they said that the wedding isn't even about us." I could feel angry tears gathering in my eyes once again, blurring my vision. "They plan on making us go through with it anyway."

"Logan, listen to me." Kendall placed a hand on my cheek, brushing away a fallen tear with his thumb. "They can't make you do anything. You have a right to say who you do and do not want to marry."

"I know, but-"

"No buts. If you don't want to marry James, then you're not going to marry James. No one is going to make you do something you don't want to do." He said with a firm glare.

I sniffed, sitting up and wrapping my arms tightly around my boyfriend's neck. I smiled into his should when his arms wrapped around me in return. "Thank you, Kendall."

"You're welcome, Logie." The blond kissed my cheek, letting out a heavy breath. "Don't worry, we'll figure this out."

…

I sighed when I walked back into my home. I was glad that even in my state of inebriation, I remembered to grab my key.

I stayed with Kendall longer than I expected, but I didn't want to go home that night and face my parents. Come the next day, I didn't think I could face James either. I had always known that James was shallow, and sometimes he could even get a big selfish. I didn't think that he would ever sell me out for something so petty. When I told Kendall this, I had to tell him about the diner. To say that he was pissed—not only at Mr. Diamond but at James too—would have been an understatement.

When Carlos found out he couldn't believe it either. He didn't think James would do something like that. Then is sunk in. The usually happy Latino looked absolutely heart-broken at the news. He spent the day pouting, looking as if someone had kicked his puppy.

This upset Kendall even more.

I finally decided to go back home that night and pack some of my stuff. If I couldn't be around James and I know I don't want to be around my parents right now, then I had no choice but to leave. I was happier with Kendall, Carlos, and their families. They were more like a family to me than my own. Their lifestyle isn't one a grew up with, and it would take some getting used to. Anything was better than surrounding myself with selfish and heartless people. Kendall had of course supported my decision one-hundred percent. I could tell he was just trying too contain his excitement at the thought of me finally moving in with him.

"Are you sure this is what you want to do?" He had asked. "I get that you're a little emotional right now and you're acting on impulse. I don't want you to regret anything..."

I had to cut him off with a kiss. As cute as he was when he rambled, I knew this was something I had to do. I always knew this would happen someday—packing up my stuff to get away from my parents. Before I even met Kendall, I knew it would happen. After I met Kendall, it was obvious it would go down this way, but I always thought it would happen later after I told my parents about him, and they kicked me out. When James and Carlos started getting closer, I thought James would be coming with me as well.

I let out another heavy sigh as I packed my clothes into a suitcase. As fed up as I was with this place, I was going to miss it.

Or at least James.

"What are you doing?"

I nearly jumped out of my skin when James' voice echoed through the room. I looked up at him standing in the doorway with a confused expression on his face. When the shock wore off, my face turned cold as I looked away from him to continue packing. "I'm not talking to you." I mumbled.

"You just disappeared from the party last night. Where did you go?" When I didn't answer, James continued. "Logan, I haven't seen you for a whole twenty-four hours. I was worried. I had to tell our parents you were sick." I heard James sigh, and the bed dipped from him sitting on it. "I'm sorry about what happened at the party, okay?"

I rolled my eyes. "No. Not okay, James."

I noticed him smirk from the corner of my eye—most likely because I just broke my vow of silence to him. "You didn't even stick around long enough to hear my answer." He continued.

"It's not something you should have to think about."

"I know that, but you know how I am. I've never really had people in my life that I care this much for besides you. Giving a fuck about someone else is new to me."

I rolled my eyes again, finally shutting my suitcase and pulling it off the bed, to my side. "It doesn't matter. You can stay here and enjoy your personal hair salon all you want, but I'm not going to stic around to look at it a know that every time I step foot in it, I helped put a good woman, mother, and friend went out of business for it."

"Hey!" James stood with a glare, stopping a perfectly good storming out moment. "_I _am not putting Mrs. Knight out of business."

"You're not helping her keep her business, either." I glared right back. "Jen has always treated us like sons. How could you do this to her? Do you know what type of person does that, James? Your mother."

I saw James' eyes go wide. He always hated being compared to his mother. Brooke Diamond was the warmest of people, and James always found pride in the fact that, though he isn't the nicest person in the world, at least he wasn't his mother. I watched his face harden again, glaring intesely at me but I didn't falter. "I'm not doing anything!" The tall brunet insisted. "And you're not exactly helping either! What's running away going to solve? You quitting as soon as things get tough isn't helping anything."

"I'm not-"

"You think you've change _so _much since meeting Kendall. You think just because you're dating someone from the other side of town makes you some sort of great South Side Activist or something, and everything you do makes you so much better than me. Well, _Hortense_, you haven't changed. You're still the scared, shy, little rich kid from North Side who can't stand up from himself or anyone else." James let out a small, humorless laugh as he stepped aside. "You want to run, then run." He gestured to the open bedroom door.

My mouth was slightly agape as he finished, eyes brimming with tears. I hated how much I was crying lately, and I hated that James' words were able to get to me so easily. I quickly looked away from him, not wanting him to see me cry. I didn't look at him as I left the room. I didn't answer him as he ran down the stairs, yelling after me. I didn't look back as I drove away from the house I had called my home for years.

James had been my only friend for as long as I could remember. I didn't like anyone else. None of the other kids would play outside in the grass until your knees were hopelessly stained green. None of the other kids would even think about being near a bug, much less go catch one and watch with wonder as I identified each one they brought to me. No other kid would put me at risk of getting yelled at by Gustavo just for the sake of a cookie. No. No other kids did that.

James did.

James was never unfriendly towards me. Besides those few years before I met Kendall, James had always been nothing but friendly. Even then, he never said an uncivil thing about me. James used to beat up the kids who said negative things about me (before he decided that he was too pretty for fighting). Maybe that's why I was sitting in my car, in the parking lot of the diner, crying my eyes out. I was shocked that James would say those things about me.

Maybe I should just go back. I wasn't ready for this. I hadn't been out on my own for ten minutes and I was already a mess. A knock on my window caused me to jump. I turned to see Kendall staring worriedly at me from outside my car. I unlocked the doors, allowing Kendall to slide into the passenger seat. He didn't even ask questions. He only pulled me into his arms and allowed me to cry into his shoulder.

From then I let everything out. I clutched Kendall's shirt tightly in my fists as I sobbed. Kendall's hands ran soothingly up and down my back, whispering soft and calming words in my ear. After a while, I found myself calming down. I wasn't surprised that Kendall was able to do that. I always felt safer in his arms, like the entire world melts away and it's just me and Kendall.

When I had finally calmed down to a few hiccups, Kendall pulled back to look at me. "Do you want to tell me what's up now?"

I sniffed, but didn't move from Kendall's embrace; in fact, I snuggled closer. "James just struck a nerve." I shook my head with a frown. "It's stupid."

"Logie, when you cry, it's not stupid." He said sternly. "What happened?"

I sighed, telling Kendall all about what happened with James. Every time I started to get choked up again, he held me tighter, waiting patiently for me to continue. It wasn't until I finished that I noticed his body was tense and his face was twisted into a scowl as he stared straight ahead of him. "Kendall," I reached up, softly grabbing his cheek to get him attention. "Don't be mad at him, okay? He was right."

"Logan-"

"No, I'm still a shy little rich kid who can't stand up for himself or the people he cares about, and being with you doesn't change who I am." Kendall was frowning at me as I said this but didn't say anything. "The only time I seem to have a brave bone in my body is when I'm drunk."

"But Logan, you _are _brave."

"No, I'm-"

"Listen to me." Kendall demanded, forcing my eyes to his. "You were brave enough to go back there tonight and leave behind your whole life for something completely different. You're standing up to your mom and refusing to go through with the wedding despite how your mother will react to it. To others you may look like you're running away, but it takes guts to do what you're doing." He gently rubbed my cheek with his thumb, wiping away any remaining tears.

I sniffled, able to give a small smile. "You really think I'm brave?"

He gave a small smile, wrapping his arms tighter around me, and kissing my temple. "Absolutely."

I smiled wider, allowing the hug to linger just a while longer before sitting up. "Should we head to your apartment now?"

"Let me just let mom know you're alright before we go to _our _apartment." He smirked, placing a quick peck to my lips. "What's mine is yours now, Logie."

I tried to hold back a smile at him calling his apartment ours but it was useless to contain my my excitement. Kendall chuckled at me as he climbed from the car. I followed behind him, entwining our fingers together as we walked into the diner.

"Again, I'm really, really sorry Jen."

Kendall and I stopped, giving each other confused glances when we spotted James standing with Jen. She smiled at the brunet, squeezing his shoulders reassuringly. "James, it's okay." She laughed. "It's not your fault, and if you could do something I know you would. You're a sweet boy, James." Jen gave a big smile at James' blush. "But unfortunately, there's nothing we can do, and you don't have to apologize for that."

"I just feel really bad for how I've been acting." James hung his head guiltily. "Logan and Carlos will probably never talk to me again, and neither will Kendall once he finds out."

I looked to Kendall with a frown, actually starting to feel bad for James. Kendall seemed conflicted. His expression said that he was still upset with James for saying those things to me and making me cry, but his eyes held sympathy for my friend. I squeezed his hand before releasing it and walking to James. "Hey, buddy." I said softly.

James spun around, wide eyed. "Logan!" I could tell he wanted to smile, but bit his lip uncertainly to stop himself. I gave him a small smile, a silent sign that we were okay. James finally smiled brightly, pulling me into a tight bear hug. I let out a small squeak of surprise, only to be muffled by James' chest. "I'm _so _sorry, Logan. I have no idea why I said what I did."

I chuckled, patting James' back. "It's okay. We both said things we didn't mean."

"I said way worse." James pulled me back, gripping my shoulders, and staring sincerely into my eyes. "I don't think you're a coward. You're stronger and smarter than I'll ever be." James sighed. "Everything you said about me was true, and I was stupid for thinking about it. A personal hair salon isn't worth losing you as a friend."

I was grinning widely as he said this. "I knew you weren't a bad guy, James."

Jen aw'd behind us, and I was about to pull James back into a hug when Kendall cleared his throat, finally approaching the two of us. James swallowed nervously at the intense look on Kendall's face. "Calm down, James. I don't hate you." He started. James visibly relaxed, and I couldn't help but let out a small laugh. "But if you ever talk to Logan like that again, you'll have me to answer to, okay?"

And just like James was tensed up again, nodding obediently.

Kendall, Jen, and I chuckled at him, and I pulled James into another hug to calm his nerves a bit. With a sigh, James finally relaxed again, but his shoulders were slightly slumped as he stepped away. "I was hoping Carlos would be here so I could explain everything to him."

I smiled sadly, running a comforting hand up and down my best friend's arm. "He's probably helping his mom close up." Jen offered helpfully. "You could still catch him if you hurry."

…

"I honestly expected Carlos to hold out a little longer." Kendall laughed as we entered his—_our _apartment. I was still smiling like a fool at the thought.

"I can't say I'm surprised." I followed him to the bedroom, plopping on the bed as I watched Kendall put my suitcase in the closet. "When James pulled out those gourmet corndogs, I knew he was a goner."

Kendall chuckled, joining me on the bed with a content sigh. "I can't believe we're living together." He smiled.

I smiled with him, leaning forward to place a long kiss to his lips. Before I could pull away, Kendall was wrapping his arms around me, bringing me closer to him, deepening the kiss. As he lay me back onto the bed, my heart began beating faster. I knew my battle against this was slowly weakening, and I wouldn't be able to resist much longer.

From the way Kendall managed to remove our shirts so quickly, chuckling at me as I ran my hand up and down his torso, he knew I wouldn't last much longer either. I let out a soft moan when Kendall moved his lips down my jaw and to my neck, sucking and biting on the skin there. I was squirming beneath him when his lips traveled to my chest, down my stomach, and teeth scraping against my hips. Kendall's hands, made their way to the hem of my pants, locking eyes with me as he slowly pulled them and my boxers down my legs.

I swallowed nervously as Kendall's eyes ran over my now fully exposed body. I could feel my face heating up when his eyes met mine, pupils wide and eyes darker than I've ever seen them. "You're so beautiful, Logie." He whispered, standing to pull off his own pants and boxers.

"I-I am?" I let out another nervous breath as Kendall crawled back onto the bed, laying flush against me.

"Gorgeous." He said before bringing our lips back together again. I let out another soft moan, wrapping my arms around the blond's neck when our bare erections rubbed together. "Kendall," I whimpered, breaking the kiss. "I need you." I bucked my hips into his, making Kendall groan as he gave a small nod.

I felt my heart swelling at how gentle Kendall was. He was careful not to put me through too much pain as he prepared me, eyes locked on mine the whole time, looking at me as if I were going to break, frequently checking if I was okay. I let out a soft chuckle through my moans, falling more in love with Kendall by the minute.

Being filled by Kendall was the most intense feeling I had ever experienced. By the time he was buried within me, I was breathless. The feeling of finally being with Kendall in the most intimate way and sharing this connection with him was everything I expected it to be and more. Feeling Kendall moving within me, his muscles tensing and relaxing under my hands, his warm breath against my ear and neck as he whispered a mantra of "You're so beautiful. So amazing. I can't believe you're mine" over and over in my ear had me tensing and whining as my orgasm quickly approached.

"I love you Kendall." I whimpered weakly into his shoulder before I was silenced by the waves of pleasure washing over me, Kendall's name being the only thing slipping passed my lips as I came.

Kendall followed with a grunt, looking directly into my eyes as he released inside me.

When we finally caught our breath, Kendall smiled down at me with that signature smirk of his. "What?" I questioned.

"I love you, too."

I blinked, mind going blank for a minute before it finally hit me. "Oh," My face slowly broke out into a grin as I slowly registered what he said.

"You're so adorable." Kendall chuckled at me, leaning down to kiss my lips as he pulled out, rolling beside me.

I immediately curled into his side, sighing contently when Kendall wrapped his arms around me in return. "I could get used to this." I smiled into the blond's chest.

"Making love or the cuddling?"

"All of it." I smiled sweetly when he leaned down giving me a peck on the lips before we let sleep take over. I was awakened in the middle of the night by my phone ringing. I tried ignoring it, not wanting to leave the warmth of Kendall's embrace, but it just kept ringing. I finally decided to get up in answer after it went off a third time. I was being careful not to wake Kendall up, but he seemed to be dead to the world. I chuckled when he was still snoring softly, not even flinching when I moved his arm from around me.

I scrambled for my phone in my pants pocket, rolling my eyes when I saw the name glowing on my screen. With a sigh, I answered the call. "Hi, mother." I said quietly, still being careful not to wake Kendall.

"Hi?" I could imagine my mother gaping at me. "You disappear for two days and all you can say to me is hi?" I opened my mouth to respond but she beat me to it. "Hortense Mitchell, where have you been?"

"I left, mother."

She paused briefly before she continued in a slightly calmer voice. "You left? As in you ran away?"

"What choice did I have?"

"You could have stayed here!" She shouted. I glanced at Kendall when he started to stir and let out a breath when he went back to snoring. I quietly stood up and left the room. "Do you know how childish it is to run away, Hortense?"

"About as childish as it is to manipulate people to get your way." I snapped.

My mother gasped and I knew if we had been standing face to face she might have slapped me. "You can't speak to me like that. I'm still your mother."

"My mother who wanted to force me into a marriage with someone I didn't love for her own personal gain." I cried. "How could you do that to your own son?"

"You would have learned to live with it."

"I wouldn't have been happy."

"Oh, spare me, Hortense." She spat. "There's no such thing as a happy marriage."

"You're wrong." I shook my head. "Mother I found someone who makes me happy. He doesn't have much, but I love him and he loves me no matter who my dad is or how much money I have."

"...He sounds like a bum from the South Side."

"He's not a bum!" I tried to desperately explain to her, but she didn't get it. "None of them are. They work hard, and besides I don't care about money."

"Hortense..." My heard her gasp from the other end. "Please tell me you aren't dating a thug."

I rolled my eyes but couldn't help the small chuckle that slipped passed my lips. "No, he's not a thug, but he does live on Fifth Avenue. His mom runs the diner that James' parents are putting out of business. I have friends here, mom. They're like my family."

She was silent for a long time. I was almost worried that she had hung up on me until I heard her let out a sigh. "I can't believe you would do this to me, Hortense." She sounded like she was on the brink of tears. "And what will your father say when he finds out you're with some hood rat?"

I could feel my anger rising slowly, but held it back...or at least tried. "His name is Kendall." I said through gritted teeth. "He's not a hood rat, and he cares about me. His whole family does. His mom treats me more like her son than you do."

"I don't care what _those _people do." She hissed. "I care that you would defame the Mitchell name over something as silly as this."

"It's not silly!"

"I won't let you do this, Hortense." My mother said defiantly, clearly no longer listening to a word I said. "It's not too late. No one knows about this. You can still come home and forget this ever happened."

"I don't want to come home. I want to be with Kendall."

She paused again and I held my breath for her reaction. Would she cry and beg for me to come back? Yell, scream, and demand that I come home? Would she apologize? Would she just let it all go and let me live my life the way I want and with who I want?

Not likely, but I could still hope.

What I wasn't expecting was for her to suddenly hang up on me. I could feel my anger slowly vanishing, and the tears of sadness gathering in my eyes. I knew it was foolish of me to think that she would change, especially through the duration of one phone call, but I still hoped she would understand. I was her only son, but I wasn't worth ruining reputation.

I tried to hold back, but the tears kept falling and before long I was letting out quiet sobs. I felt a pair of arms wrap around me and I instantly leaned into the embrace. I could feel myself already starting to calm down, but the pain was still there. "It's okay, Logie." Kendall whispered, running his hands through my hair. "You don't need her."

I nodded, knowing it was true. I had gotten so far without her or my father, and I didn't need them now. "I know." I whimpered, feeling the tears returning and falling down my cheeks. "But she's still my mom."

…

I sighed, hanging up my phone and tossing it onto the table in front of me. "How are you holding up, sweetheart?" Jen asked, taking a seat across from me.

"Well, she cut me off completely. All of my credit cards have been canceled and my trust fun has been frozen until I come to my senses." Jen frowned at me, but didn't speak. "I can keep the car I have, and I can go back and get the rest of my stuff. After that she doesn't want me anywhere near _her _house." I finished with a sigh.

"I'm so sorry, honey." Jen finally spoke, reaching across the table to squeeze my hand.

I shrugged. "I don't care about the money. I never did, and I have more than enough money saved up." I said with a slight smile. Jen raised a brow at me. "My dad taught me everything he knows about saving and investing."

"He hoped you'd follow in his footsteps." Jen said with a small smile of her own.

"No matter how much I told him I'd rather be a doctor." I laughed and Jen laughed with me.

When our laughter died down, I was left with a half-hearted smile. Jen took notice, her smile going sympathetic. "You two were close, huh?"

I shrugged again, playing with the napkin in front of me. "Kind of." Over the years my father and I had spent a lot of time bonding together. Mother would usually be out with her friends, doing whatever, but dad always tried to make a little time for me. He was a busy man—that I understood from a young age. It never matter at the time that mother didn't act like a mother or that daddy didn't always have time for me. I had James and Kelly then; now I had so much more family that I could have asked for.

"Hey," Jen shook my hand to get my attention. "How about I make you some food."

"You don't have to-"

"Logan, I am making you lunch. Do not argue with me." Jen said sternly, patting my head affectionately as she walked off.

I chuckled, doing just as she said. I looked around the empty diner for a moment, feeling upset that this place was actually about to close. Jen's restaurant had that homey feel, and the one James' dad built was undoubtedly flashy and expensive. I don't know why people would suddenly stop going to a place that's always been there for something new. I guess it's just because of that. It was new.

I was pulled from my thoughts when my phone went off. My forehead wrinkled in confusion when I saw it was my dad calling me. "Dad?"

There was a shot pause before he spoke. "Hey, Loges."

"Hey..." I replied slowly.

"I'm just going to get to the point, son." He took in a breath. "I don't agree with your mother. You're a grown man and you deserve to be happy with whoever you want—rich or poor."

I blinked in surprise. "Really?" I felt a small smile coming to my lips.

"Of course. You're my son." I didn't know what to say. I was left speechless by my dad's words. All this time I thought he agreed with my mom on everything, but he was different. "I'm sure the man you're with is great."

I was full out grinning now, words unable to describe how happy I was. "I'd love for you to meet him sometime."

"I'd like that." There was another pause between us before he spoke again. "So...what are you up to? Are you okay? You have a place to stay, right? Enough money?"

"Yes, dad. I'm fine." I smiled softly, glad at least my dad was still there for me. "I was actually thinking of making an investment."

"Really?" I could hear the surprised tone in my dad's voice.

"Yeah, but...I could use your help."

…

"Logan, it was a long day with Gustavo. I just want to go home and sleep."

I rolled my eyes at boyfriend. He had been whiny since the diner had closed. "Shut up." I laughed at the pout on his face as I continued to drag him down the side walk. "You're gonna love this." We stopped in front of the diner and I turned to face Kendall with a large smile. "Tada!" I gestured to the building.

Kendall stared at the building blankly before looking back at me with a raised brow. "My mom's closed diner?"

"No!" I reached into my pocket, pulling out a set of keys and jingling them in front of his face. "_Your _diner—open for business." I turned around unlocking the door, dragging Kendall inside with me. I flipped on the lights, smiling as Kendall's eyes widened at the sight of the diner. It was redecorated and repainted so that it looked newer, but it still held the same homey feeling it always had.

"H-how...?"

"I bought the diner." I shrugged.

Kendall's shock faded, leaving him looking concerned. "Logie..."

"Don't worry about it." I interrupted, knowing exactly what he was thinking. "I have faith in this diner and that you and your mom will manage it amazingly."

"My mom?"

"Surprised?" Jen appeared from over the counter, smiling widely at her son.

"You knew?"

"We told you the diner was closed so that Logan and his dad could work on it and get it ready for it's grand opening tomorrow." Jen came over and patted me on the back.

"It's why I let you mope all week." I grinned. "I didn't need you to stumble upon a flyer and ruin the surprise."

"You actually sold the diner to Logan?" Kendall asked his mom.

Jen grinned at us. "I told you I had no problem keeping the diner in the family." The auburn woman leaned over, kissing my cheek, causing me to blush.

"I can't..." Kendall shook his head, but I could see him smiling. He loved this. Seeing that smile on his face was enough to make all of this worth it. "Logan," Kendall faced me with a wide grin. "I...I don't know what to say."

"Then shut up." I laughed, wrapping my arms around around his neck. "What's mine is yours, remember?" I smirked.

"You're amazing." Kendall grinned widely placing a kiss to my lips.


End file.
